Iran's Jews: From ancient roots to the modern day

Iran's Jews: From ancient roots to the modern day Submitted by Amara Sophia Elahi on Mon, 05/25/2026 - 09:53 Iran’s government is often perceived as antisemitic, but the country has a longstanding Jewish community dating back 2,700 years Photos of Etan Mabourakh's family in Iran in the pre-Islamic Revolution era (Etan Mabourakh) Off When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the joint sessions of the US Congress in March 2015, just as President Obama was about to sign a nuclear deal with Iran , he misquoted the Biblical story of Esther in an attempt to thwart the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action from being signed, and to set out his case that Iran posed an existential threat to Jews and the state of Israel. In his speech, Netanyahu said the ancient Jewish people in Iran were almost killed by a Persian viceroy. However, it was an Amalekite official to the Persian court, Haman, who wanted to kill the Jews, but his plan was foiled by Queen Esther and her cousin Mordecai.